# If you build it they will come...



## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

So I finally got tired of only being able to store 40-50 cigars in my Medium sized Savoy Desktop Humidor. My biggest complaint is actually when I would find a good deal on a box I just didn't have the proper storage. Also didn't like digging to the bottom of the desktop to find a smoke I wanted. I had to pass up on some boxes lately that I really wish I would have purchased but just didn't have the ability to keep them. Also the fact that I have a kegerator on my back porch tends to attract several friends that come over and see me smoking a cigar and must have one so I need room to keep some cheapies around for them. On another note I know that Puff is gonna open its doors to a whole new world soon!

So tonight I went to grab dinner to go. Decided to head to a local sushi place that happens to be two doors down from a cigar bar. Order placed and had 10 minutes to kill, so why not. Only purchased one Liga #9 Robusto but decided I had had enough. Also have some orders coming in this week from the Devil, as well as a box of Lil Monsters, and my desk top is already bursting so something's got to give. I can't smoke enough to keep up!

Popped in Wally World on the way home to purchase a cheap, small cooler. Well in true PUFF fashion I purchased this:


























120 QT 5 day Coleman for $54.88.

So I have been collecting boxes for a couple of months from my B&Ms in ancticipation of this day:


















I will go ahead and wash out the cooler tonight with soap and water. Over night tonight I will fill the plastic containers with baking soda. Tomorrow morning I will let the cooler sit outside all day in the sweltering Florida heat.

I should be able to repeat this process easily through Wednesday.

I have also placed on order for 4 of the cedar shelves from cheap humidor tonight. I have a couple of Digital hyrgometers coming in from the devil tomorrow. I tried to find the correct kitty litter at Wally World but could not find the silica in odorless. I will pick some up from a pet store on Wednesday.

The cooler will be stored in an extra bedroom closet. My house is always kept at 78 during the day and 72 at night. Best I can afford to run it at this time.

It all finally came to a head!

I hope to update as the week goes on for the build.

I've read several threads and feel I'm headed in the correct direction. Any tips or advice will gladly be taken!

Also I'm curious to see how long the first cooler lasts! Girlfriend already said she'd get the wine cooler for X-Mas! She also is the one who purchased me the Medium Desktop for our anniversary this past March, same month I joined Puff. At that time I never dreamed of filling up the desktop.

Sorry for the long post, be gentle its my first "new thread," and I'm excited for the build and the future!

You guys are awesome and I truly love popping in several times throughout my day (feel like I live on here)!


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## zephead61 (Apr 18, 2012)

Congrats on the expansion project! If you ever need any help storing all those smokes, you can always count on me! :boink:


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## joshuarodger (Jun 20, 2012)

Welcome to the crowd. I feel like I need another one to be able to keep up...


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## mcgreggor57 (Nov 3, 2011)

And down the slope you go! It looks like you're well on your way to a successful build, congrats.


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## android (Feb 27, 2012)

lookin' tough!


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## DarrelMorris (Feb 7, 2012)

looks good. Start planning for when that gets full.


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## Dhughes12 (Feb 15, 2012)

Lookin good. Finished mine a few weeks ago. just a small pointer. I saw u have a vsg box. Initially I used three media bags full of silica KL sitting in a box, but I don't think I was getting enough surface exposure to regulate the humidity right. I actually snapped the top off that vsg box, filled that with the kl. gave it a few spritzes of distiller water (3-4 tops!). And it's been holding a rock solid 63% ever since, regardless of how often I open the cooler or add/remove sticks and boxes. It recovers and holds amazingly well. Oh. One other idea. I would put the KL you are going to use in a microwave safe bowl and nuke the crap out it to remove all the moisture it's currently holding. Go 1-2 min at a time, wiping the inside of the microwave after each turn. You will be amazed at how much water is already in the kl. I did that then sat all my boxes and kl in the humi for 4 days, made sure it was holding without the sticks. Then added them in and gave it a day to recover.


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## Kruz (May 4, 2012)

Hey Ray, strong first thread! Love it.

I'm going through the exact same process right now and following the Coolidor sticky. I found filling the cooler to almost the top with hot water and then adding 4 cups of bleach (50 qt cooler), closing it and then rinsing with cold water the next day took almost all of the plastic smell off of it. Also I have no fears of contamination now. I am going the baking soda route as well to get rid of the hint of bleach now.

Good luck with setting your's up. I'm excited to see the final product.


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## nikesupremedunk (Jun 29, 2012)

Lol I bought a 12 ct wine cooler because everyone said to go bigger (originally looking into 6 ct coolers). Congrats on the coolidor but you'll find hard to go from cooler to wine cooler and a lot more expensive. Since ur ambient temp is good, I would just keep the coolidor and keep stocking up! 

I bet you will feel limitations from the cooler soon haha


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## Kevin Keith (Jan 24, 2010)

Lookin' good! Don't worry we like lots and lots of pictures!


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

Ok the afternoon Florida rain has not been kind to me as far as leaving the cooler open in the sun. Got home late today and half full of nasty looking rain water. Good news is I still haven't got anything in yet to finish the build so no rush. I am going to wash out tonight with soap and water and let it sit overnight with baking soda.

My orders came in yesterday and I will post some pictures up later tonight. I had to move some dog rockets out of my desktop to clear room but I don't think it will be much of an issue if they sit out until this weekend or early next week once I get the cooler seasoned.


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## V-ret (Jun 25, 2012)

I'm getting so temped to just get myself a coolidor. But I know as soon as I do i'm going to buy a box then think, well thats a lonely box........ Every box needs a friend right........ Well its only half full might as well get a couple more right.......... Ok I'm over the half way mark whats 5 more boxes......... Hey guys I bought another Cooler the first one filled up...... :smile:

Its not too scary of a thought until the wife goes, hmm, I wonder why there is a cooler in the back room?...... 

Getting back on topic though, I can't wait to see how you set this up. I like seeing all the different ways everyone goes about this task. Some get crazy others keep it simple. I like them both.


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

So I have completly been slacking on updating my build.

The cooler has sat outside in the sun until this afternoon, so right about one week. Probably more than needed but I got busy at work.

So tonight I purchased some Kitty Litter and Media bags on the way home.










After filling the bags up I used distilled water and a new sponge to apply to the boxes I had picked up.










I also had forgot to salt test my hygros I had picked up on cbid to I started that tonight as well.










I ended up removing some of the salt so I'd say I have 1/8 of a cup of damp salt.

So Wednesday morning I hope to drop the two Hygros in the cooler and see where I am at.

Of course I still have a ton of litter left over and can always add some!

Had a setback on ordering cedar shelfs, but will be able to order them by the end of this week.

My Bday is Saturday, so I'm hoping to be holding steady enough to place some orders to fill this baby up!


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

The salt test is in.

The oval was reading at 76 and the rectangular right at 75.

Opened up the cooler and placed one on each side.

By the way it smells absolutely amazing inside the cooler with the boxes I placed in there.

Keeping my finger crossed that this bad boy is going to be holding true somewhere that I can live with!


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## ssutton219 (Apr 17, 2007)

looks like you are on the right path!!!


Good Luck!!


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## jheiliger (May 12, 2012)

How's it holding Ray?


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

So after around 4 days I'm not quite where I want to be.

Placed a Hygrometer on either side of the cooler. Both read 75 deg on the temp.

As to the RH one reads 52 and the other 56. [%|]

So I've got to adjust some and add some more litter to hopefully get this bad boy up in the sixties.

Also do I need to look into a fan based on one side reading higher?

The bags are still in the cooler exaclty how they are in the previous photos. The lower RH is the Hygro on the left side of the cooler.


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## joshuarodger (Jun 20, 2012)

RayJax said:


> So after around 4 days I'm not quite where I want to be.
> 
> Placed a Hygrometer on either side of the cooler. Both read 75 deg on the temp.
> 
> ...


i'm fairly new to this but from my experience (and i did have some of your same problems), it looks like those bags should have enough kitty litter to do the trick so adding more kitty litter probably won't fix the problem. more KL should absorb the remaining moisture in the air and could lower your RH even more.it sounds like you need to add water, not KL. you can soak a sponge or towel or something and put it in a tupperware container inside your cooler and let it sit there for a few hours/days. the RH should go up and once you get it where you want it, remove the sponge and it should hold right there in that area. if it is too high you can leave the door open and let the moisture escape your cooler or you can then add more KL to absorb the moisture and bring it to a manageable range.

another option is to spray your bags of KL with DW. wait a couple hours and check the RH, this will increase the RH inside your cooler by a little bit each time you do it. if it's not enough, do it again until it is.

personally, i think the sponge method is a bit less labor intensive but either method should work. again, since your RH is low you want to add water not introduce more KL which will absorb more water.


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

joshuarodger said:


> i'm fairly new to this but from my experience (and i did have some of your same problems), it looks like those bags should have enough kitty litter to do the trick so adding more kitty litter probably won't fix the problem. more KL should absorb the remaining moisture in the air and could lower your RH even more.it sounds like you need to add water, not KL. you can soak a sponge or towel or something and put it in a tupperware container inside your cooler and let it sit there for a few hours/days. the RH should go up and once you get it where you want it, remove the sponge and it should hold right there in that area. if it is too high you can leave the door open and let the moisture escape your cooler or you can then add more KL to absorb the moisture and bring it to a manageable range.
> 
> another option is to spray your bags of KL with DW. wait a couple hours and check the RH, this will increase the RH inside your cooler by a little bit each time you do it. if it's not enough, do it again until it is.
> 
> personally, i think the sponge method is a bit less labor intensive but either method should work. again, since your RH is low you want to add water not introduce more KL which will absorb more water.


Thanks for clarifying for me. Not sure why I was thinking of this in reverse order.

I'll break out the distilled water and report back tomorrow morning!


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## jheiliger (May 12, 2012)

I just started a cooler yesterday ( http://www.cigarforums.net/forums/vb/cigar-accessory-discussion/313986-cooler-yes-i-think-so.html ), and I added probably a cup of water or so to 2lbs of litter.

I know lots of guys here are bagging their litter, and some are leaving it open/exposed in a container. I chose to leave mine open in a container for maximum exposure to surface area.

It also depends on the climate you live in, and where your cigars are stored. I live in Houston, and the humidity averages out around 80%-90% outside and HOT! So... we run our A/C all the time. This pulls the humidity down inside the house to around 50%, so I figured I was going to have to add water to get the litter up into the 60's. For me it was a complete guess as to how much... I put the DW in a spray bottle, and sprayed the beads a few times, let them sit for 5mins to absorb, shook them around, and then sprayed them again. I repeated this several times and then threw the box in the cooler.

I'm confident if you add some DW, your RH will go up.


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## GIBrett (Jul 29, 2012)

I will be starting a build hopefully tomorrow. I'm really looking forward to getting the extra storage!


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

After about 22 hours currently sitting at 65% on one Hygro and 62% on the other. Still planning on grabbing an Oust fan.

As for the temp inside, with current Florida temps the AC stays at 78 from 8:00 am until 5:00 pm. Once I'm home it is bumped to 72. With the size house I live in its what I can afford. The cooler is in a closet that is likely the cooldest unused space in the house.

The good news is after some recent bids on the devil site and planned pickups at the B&M, I still have until this Thursday/Friday to have her holding steady.

Then the filling season will start.


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## jheiliger (May 12, 2012)

Awesome! If you want it wetter, just add water. If you freeze your sticks, temp is much less of an issue!


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## sleepyguy5757 (May 29, 2012)

Awesome thread so far. I am also thinking about going to a larger cooler (50qt filled up quicker than expected) and using KL. I havent been able to find exquisicat here locally, but we do have a Petco. Are these the right kind of KL for humidication?
Petco Crystals Cat Litter: Silica Cat Litter at Petco
Precious Cat Dr. Elsey's Long Haired Cat Litter at PETCO
Thanks in advance!


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## jheiliger (May 12, 2012)

Hey Enoch,

Any Silica based UNSCENTED kitty litter will do the trick...

I just did a build, and I'm using MiMi's...

Here's my build - http://www.cigarforums.net/forums/vb/cigar-accessory-discussion/313986-cooler-yes-i-think-so.html

Joe

Joe


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## Avenidadecuba (Jul 27, 2012)

I'm not sure if that's a good thing! It's going to hammer my wallet, and I'm sure my wife won't be too happy, but I must build one.....so they can come. 

Awesome setup man. I'll be watching all of these threads as I plan to build one soon for storage. If you have any tips or ideas please share. I've noticed a lot of cigar boxes are varnished and stained so I've been keeping a look out for boxes that have none. So far, I have a Cuban Partagas box, Morro Castle Torpedo Box, Padilla Casadores Toro box, Tatuaje Miami box. I'm not sure if it matters, but I want as little as stain and varnish as possible. I've noticed too that interior stickers use a glue that can affect the taste of cigars if stored in them long term, or not properly ventilated before using. If you air out one of these boxes for a couple of weeks, it gets rid of MOST of that.


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## bwhite220 (May 15, 2011)

RayJax said:


> 120 QT 5 day Coleman for $54.88.


Sweet man! I just bought the same cooler tonight to start the process as well. Thanks for sharing what you've done so far. RG for you, Ray!


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

Super slammed at work but wanted to post an update real quick.

The cooler seems to be holding steady at 66% on the one Hygro.

Came home from work and decided it was time to move some sticks into the cooler.

This was my small desktop humidor when I opened it:










I also had probably close to 20 sticks in the freezer the past couple of days, as well as I picked up 7 more sticks on the way home!

This is how she looks using the boxes I aquired to season with:

First picture is bottom left layer:










Bottom Right:










Top Left:










Top Right:










I am finally placing an order for three cedar trays off cheap humidors tonight (I know I know, I said this last time, but now I gots extra Bday $$$$).

The desktop will be used to house my small Liga, Opus, and other hard to find stash for the time being. Remember this was an anniversary gift from the girlfriend!

Certianly built for the future on this one, plenty of extra room!

Its a modest start but I am more than pleased with my build and the stash.


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## V-ret (Jun 25, 2012)

How is the lid on yours?

I went to Wally World yesterday to check them out and the 3 that I found all had lids that didn't seem like they made a good seal. They closed without any pressure and when I flipped the cooler upside down and the lid came open. 

Does it matter how tight the lid is? The ones I saw seemed like it would leak all my humidity out. Any advice?


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## android (Feb 27, 2012)

looks real good bro. are those the petsmart aquarium media bags you're using for KL? whatever they are, they look much sturdier than the cheapo pantyhose i'm currently using.


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## android (Feb 27, 2012)

V-ret said:


> How is the lid on yours?
> 
> I went to Wally World yesterday to check them out and the 3 that I found all had lids that didn't seem like they made a good seal. They closed without any pressure and when I flipped the cooler upside down and the lid came open.
> 
> Does it matter how tight the lid is? The ones I say seemed like it would leak all my humidity out. Any advice?


i'd think you would want a tight fitting lid. maybe you could put a layer of electrical tape or something around the inside to make it close tighter.


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## V-ret (Jun 25, 2012)

never thought about electrical tape. And I'm suppose to be a *******, lol.

I haven't bought one yet. I was looking at the 150qt rubbermaid marine but these are 50ish at wally world right now. 

OP could you please post a review after about 2-3 weeks please. I'm just curious if your lid is the same as I described and if it is how does it work in the long run. Thanks so much and thanks for the thread.


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## Kruz (May 4, 2012)

Really nice setup Ray!


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

V-ret said:


> never thought about electrical tape. And I'm suppose to be a *******, lol.
> 
> I haven't bought one yet. I was looking at the 150qt rubbermaid marine but these are 50ish at wally world right now.
> 
> OP could you please post a review after about 2-3 weeks please. I'm just curious if your lid is the same as I described and if it is how does it work in the long run. Thanks so much and thanks for the thread.


Based on the fact that I'm ordering the trays and more sticks I'll have no problem posting updates for the next couple of weeks.

The media bags are the .99 ones from Petsmart.

My lid is pretty solid. I have to use both hands to open it as the seal is pretty solid.

I know if you look at some of the tupperdor builds they show ways to make the seal better.


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## V-ret (Jun 25, 2012)

You're awesome, I'll keep on checking other stores till I find a good lid. And yes a review or 2 would be great. Thanks!


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## Llacrossedude7 (Jun 21, 2012)

Looking good man. Just time to fill that baby to the rim.


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

So it has been non stop rain in Jacksonville for the past week or so.

Been checking in on the cooler and the far right Hygro spiked up to 73 with the one on the left maintaining at 66.

Pulled one bag of KL out and over the day the right has dropped to 71 and stayed steady the past 6 hours.

I guess for now I will just keep an eye on things. Have smoked 5 cigars out of the cooler now and all have had zero issues!


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## Herf N Turf (Dec 31, 2008)

Don't underestimate cat litter's ability to suck up ambient moisture in the store. Every time you open the container, you're also letting in moisture. I bake my beads at 240*F for about an hour, every three months or so, most of the year (humid climate). You can do the same with cat litter.

I would prefer masking tape for the seal, over electrical, since (blue) masking tape leaves no residue.


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## TonyBrooklyn (Jan 28, 2010)

RayJax said:


> Super slammed at work but wanted to post an update real quick.
> 
> The cooler seems to be holding steady at 66% on the one Hygro.
> 
> ...


NICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:madgrin:


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

Still holding at 72 and 66.

I don't keep the lid open for more than a minute at a time. Typically I can think in my head exactly what smoke I want, open the lid, and grab it.

Just about a week ago this puppy had been holding for over one week at 66 on the hygro that is currently up to 72.

I'll let it sit one more day and see where it comes down too. The rain is going to continue in Northeast Florida for a while too which I certianly think is contributing.


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## Herf N Turf (Dec 31, 2008)

If you're seeing those high numbers this consistently and expect them to continue, you may want to take more drastic measures. In the gun section of your local sporting goods store, they will carry cans of dessicant. I'd get one and put it in there. It will suck the moisture out of the air pretty fast (day or two), but the cigars will take a month, or so to recover. In the mean time, I'd start baking your cat litter to get it dried out. Leave it in the oven while it cools, so you don't undo what you just did. Once it's down to room temp, put it back in the cooler and shut the lid quick.


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

Well I pulled everythning out of the cooler and thought I'd update. To start with the cooler lid is still as tight as the day I purchased it.
The RH has still been holding at 66 even with all the additions I have added. Still rocking the three media bags with Kitty Litter. Up to 10 shelves now from cheap humidors and several boxes.

Thought I'd post up some pictures while I was at it!

Everything on the outside:










Some Random cigars aging, PDR, Gran Habanos, Bahia Maduros:


























On to the trays. I have them organized for the most part by brand:










































And here is an overall shot of everything inside:










You can't see all of the boxes but there is a box of Sharks, Box of Undercrown Robustos and a box of Corona Viva, 2 boxes of Lil Monsters, and the other two boxes are the ones holding the PDR and GHV 2002.

I am also still rocking the desk top humidor that keeps all of my Liga Privada stuff (FFP, Dirty Rat, T52, LP9, L40) and some other random sticks. I'll add that pciture later.

Anyways just wanted to post up a status after several months!


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## Btubes18 (Aug 21, 2011)

Awesome cooler. Glad things worked out for you.


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## Phil from Chicago (May 6, 2012)

its looking good man


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## Stiks (Dec 3, 2012)

Great looking stash you got going there!


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## splattttttt (May 17, 2012)

Very nice Ray. Doesn't take long does it?


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## Rebel420 (Jan 27, 2013)

Good job on this. Looks like a nice collection of sticks you have in there as well.


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## Sdober (Dec 20, 2012)

Nice post,,, and very informative..keep it up.


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## Jimmy James (Jul 4, 2012)

Sweet looking cooler you have there. Nice stash also.


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## cuban- crafted (Jan 1, 2013)

Very nice stash and awesome cooler setup it really makes me want to build my own


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## splattttttt (May 17, 2012)

Ray, you've done an incredible job at building this. And so we came. 
Some for vicarious reasons. Some cuse we love to see. And some in case you needed help.

If and when you're ready to start a second coolador project, Forrest can help supply you with a 6 pc tray set... You get 6 pc Spanish Cedar tray set total. 
4 trays fit in the bottom, 2 trays fit on upper ledge. Trays have diagonal slats and will hold approximately 736 5.5 x 42rg cigars. 
These trays are built to fit the Coleman 70 qt coolers. Cost $85.00 before shipping which is very reasonable. $17. from him to me in Boston.

Coolidors - Custom Wineador™ Creations


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## RayJax (Mar 13, 2012)

I will def look to Forrest on my next build! More than likely a new build will come along soon as I continue to look for boxes at great prices and jump on them. My next build will likely hold boxes for longer term storage, but I am looking at a wineador to hold my singles and another coolidor for boxes, leaving me the original for overflow!

As I posted originally the entire reason I built this cooler to start with is I was tired of passing up great sticks at great prices. It is a great piece of mind knowing if I come across a box deal or even a sampler deal that is to good to pass up I have the required room to store them!

When I first joined everyone told me the small desk top wouldn't last long, then I was told the first coolidor wouldn't last long! Oh how admitting when you are wrong is so bitter sweet!


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## splattttttt (May 17, 2012)

My wife hates seeing the himidors and wineadore and tupperdores in MY corner of OUR family room. So I'm gonna build me a walk in humidor. Out of sight, out of mind. Just haven't mentioned it to her yet.


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